Dark Survival
by hichigomate
Summary: Zacarias De La Cruz has no hold onto his life. He's struggling with the darkness, wondering if he'll have to meet the dawn. When he hears of a woman who could be his lifemate, will he take the chance to meet her? Of course, M for later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**Dislcaimer: Sadly, I'm getting away from typing any manga stories at the moment. You might ask why that is, and the answer would be: simply because. I just don't feel like typing a manga story. Instead, I'm going to do a story on my other favorite series, my other favorite breed of people. The Carpathians! They're just perfect for storylines. Now, I've read almost every single Carpathian novel of Christine Feehan, and I just have to set up one of my favorite families with lifemates of their own. Now, I was going to break up the Daratrazanoff family up and put some of them with people of my making, but I just couldn't do that yet. Instead, I'm working with the De La Cruz family. To be more specific, I'm working with sad, lonely Zacarias De La Cruz. So, have fun reading about little ol' Zac meeting his lifemate!**

**Summary: Zacarias De La Cruz, the eldest of his five brothers, has survived centuries in the endless darkness. He lost his emotions early, and was better able to survive than his brothers, but is no longer sure he wants to keep waking every night. Three of his brothers have found their lifemates, and the other two were searching desperately for theirs. But he knew he was too ancient, too dark, and too deadly to find his own lifemate. Would he choose to meet the dawn? Or would he be forced to lose his soul to the darkness, with no light to save him? This is set after the Dark Possession novel.**

**Dark Survival**

**The Decision**

"Zacarias! Brother, are you there?"

Zacarias De La Cruz, head of the ancient De La Cruz family, glanced up when he heard the softly spoken question. The deep voice belonged to his younger brother, Rafael. What was he doing here again? It took Zacarais a moment to remember that he'd promised to meet with Rafael and his lifemate, Colby. That was today? Nowadays, it seemed all of his nights blended together, into an endless night where the ever-calling darkness enticed him to join them. Zacarias sighed, dismissing those thoughts.

"In here, Rafael. Have you a need of me?" He spoke it like his brother was in the room; even though Rafael was many yards away, his sharp Carpathian hearing would enable him to hear the words.

It took mere moments, but seemed so long with the whispering darkness, before Rafael materialized in front of him. Tall and broad-shouldered, like all of the De La Cruz brothers. Long, drawn-back hair, as black as the night and just as thick. Sinewy muscles beneath clothes, and cold black eyes that warmed with affection at the sight of his brother. He moved with his cat-like grace to stand before Zacarias, bowing his head a little in respect to the head of his family.

"Brother, you are looking hungry. Have you fed this night?" Like the others, Rafael was beginning to grow worried over his eldest brother. He'd lasted the longest of them all against the darkness, and was still fighting it. They needed to find his lifemate soon, or else they'd lose him, but whether to the sun or to the darkness was indeterminable right now. And they couldn't risk that.

Zacarias looked at his young brother, wishing not for the first time he felt the same affection for his brothers as they felt for him. But he'd lost his emotions centuries ago, younger than most lost them anyway. His icy black eyes were forever cold, and more often than not frightened the others with less knowledge of him. His long, thick black hair was pulled back with a leather band to keep it off his face, hanging past his broad shoulders, yet it was still wild. Now, he ran a large hand through it, more habit than anything else. "I am fine, Rafael. Do not worry; if I have a need, I will call to one of you. Have you brought your lifemate?" He asked, his voice rumbling out of his chest.

Rafael nodded, but he didn't take his eyes off his brother. Using the telepathic connection he'd created with his lifemate, Colby Jansen, through their blood exchanges, he called to her. _You can come inside now, Colby. He's waiting._

She replied back in the same way, her worry passing onto him. _Is he alright? I caught your despair. He isn't doing well, is he?_ She asked, ever concerned.

He sent her the impression of a sad smile. _My brother is lonely, lifemate. He doesn't have anyone who can be the light to his darkness, anyone who can anchor him to our world. We will lose him soon, and I do not want that to happen._

Colby drifted into the room, circling her arms around Rafael from behind as her emerald-green eyes closed, hiding her emotions from the silent Carpathian in front of them. _I know you worry; we all do. I know you don't want to lose him after you've finally found your affection for him._

Rafael nodded, running a hand through her long dark hair. He loved Colby like he'd never thought he would, and sometimes that emotion scared him. But most of the time he relished the feeling. Smiling slightly, he drew her foreword, and presented her to his oldest brother. "Zacarias De La Cruz, I present to you Colby De La Cruz, formally Cobly Jansen, and now my lifemate." He waited for a respons, metaphorically holding his breath.

Zacarais nodded, bending from his great height to look Colby in the eye. "Welcome to our family, little sister. We are glad you were able to save our brother; I will be forever grateful to you for that." He spoke formally, speaking more as a whole of the family than his own person.

Colby bowed, somewhat frightened in his powerful presence, yet feeling sorrow for him as well. "Thank you. I know you weren't expecting this when you first sent Rafael to me, but I am just as grateful to have saved him." She whispered, her voice full of her emotions.

Zacarias placed a hand on her head, but it was an impersonal touch, no emotion in it whatsoever. "I would have liked you to have stayed longer, but it would not be safe. I have heard stories of the undead close to this area; Rafael, I want you to take her away from here. If the stories are true, the undead would come after her." So he said it, so it would be followed. His word was law.

"I understand. We will go to ground in the morning, and leave the minute we can tomorrow. Will you have a need of me tonight? Shall I hunt with you?" Rafael asked, Colby firmly wrapped in his arms.

Zacarias sent him a small smile, but it was just a mere twisting of his lips. He knew what his brother tried to do. He hoped that, if he accompanied Zacarias when he went hunting, he would be able to stop him from taking to much blood from his prey. But Zacarias wouldn't endanger his brother that way; who knew when the monster would come out. "No; I will not have a need of you this night. I will control myself." Suddenly, Zacarias scented something in the air, and tilted his head to the side. "Did Manolito send word to you that he was coming?" He asked, wondering when Rafael and Colby shook their heads no. "Then what could he be doing here?"

His question was answered when the second oldest, second most powerful De La Cruz brother showed himself. He stopped right next to Zacarias, almost appearing his twin as he stood next to him. Both were dark haired with wild hair, and cold, handsome looked that made women want to swoon. Both were tall, although Zacarias was just a little taller, and his eyes colder. Manolito was accompanied with another, though; someone even more surprising.

It was the Prince of the Carpathian people, Mikhail Dubrunsky. He, too, had the dark Carpathian looks; long black hair, weary black eyes, and he stood tall and muscled. He wasn't with his mate, Raven, for once; it appeared she had "stayed home."

"To what do we owe this honor, Prince, Manolito?" Zacarias questioned, turning with a deeper bow than he'd afforded Rafael.

Manolito shrugged, a dark ripple of power. His large figure contrasted with his nickname, Manolito, which was a childish name given to him by his brothers that meant little boy because he had more muscle and broader shoulders than the others; his real name was Manuel. He had been riding the darkness closely when his lifemate, MaryAnn Delaney, went to him and saved him. "Mikhail has information on a human woman with high psychic power. He brought the information to me, and I wanted him to tell you of it, brother." He said, wasting no time with idle talk.

Zacarias turned questioningly to the Prince, who nodded. "Byron and his lifemate Antoinetta ran across the woman one night while hunting with their nephew, Josef. They said that she isn't like the normal psychics, though; she seems to have more the power of our people. She has a natural affinity to animals, mainly the large cats. They thought they saw her walking with a large tiger, but she disappeared before they could make certain. I would have you go to where they saw her, and meet her." Mikhail decreed, the Prince's command to his warrior.

If Zacarias could have felt anger, he would be furious. They thought to send him away! "And what would I do once I got there, Prince? I know what you think; you think to hope she is my lifemate, and that by us meeting you can save me. But what if you are wrong?" He hissed, wondering at the stupidity.

"Yes, and I know what you think. You think to meet the dawn, and I refuse to let you do that, as does your family. And I know she's your lifemate."

Zacarias leaned down just a litte, turning dangerous. "And how would you know such a thing? You were not there." He spoke calmly, belying the danger about him.

But Mikhail didn't back down; he wasn't the Prince for nothing, after all. "She spoke your name in the dark. Your _name_, Zacarias. Clearly, although it wasn't clear of whom she was speaking it to. But she did speak it; Zacarias De La Cruz. They didn't catch what she spoke after that, but the fact that she spoke of you should be enough."

Zacarias turned away in a swish of cloth, gliding to the window to look up at the dark midnight sky. Manolito followed him, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I would have you do this, brother. We all need you to do this."

Zacarias exhaled loudly, closing his eyes. He opened them again, and turned the burning depths on the Prince. "Very well; I will go to this human. But be warned; if she is not my lifemate, and I lose control of myself to the darkness, it will be on your head." He looked at Manolito. "All of your heads. And know that if she is my lifemate, we are all damning her to live eternity with a monster." He honestly believed that, too. He knew how close he was riding the line of darkness; he could switch sides any moment, although he was fighting his hardest to not turn, to not become the undead.

Mikhail nodded. "Of course. I thank you for seeing this our way, and agreeing to our demands. We are sending you to the Americas, near Texas, as it would be. She lives on a ranch, I have heard. although her name Byron and Antoinetta could not get. Here is a picture of the woman."

Zacarias took the photo, studying the female in the picture. He couldn't see the color of her wide eyes, or the color of her long hair. As he'd grown older, he'd lost the color in his eyesight as well as his emotions. He sighed; he figured that this couldn't work. And yet, deep down, he wanted it to work; he wanted it to work so he would be saved, so he'd have his eternity here in the world, with his brothers, and his Prince. Sure, it wouldn't be easy, with the Manilov brothers planning something, as always, but if he had a lifemate at his side, he'd be fine.

He heard a sound and looked up; everyone had left but Mikhail, who was staring at him. "I am sending Gregori with you; his lifemate Savannah will also accompany him, although both will be careful due to the twin girls she's carrying. Should there be trouble, or this woman is not your lifemate, they will see you safely home." He paused. "They will also make sure that no harm comes to you, or the woman."

Zacarias nodded. So, the Dark One and his lifemate was accompanying him? This would certainly be interesting.

**And we're stopping. I so love the Daratrazonoff family; Lucian, Gabriel, DARIUS and GREGORI sound totally hot! I mean, seriously! Anyway, this isn't about them, though. Yet. I think. So, Zacarias might have a lifemate...I can't wait until they meet! I hope it'll work out for them; I can't wait until I read the actual book, if he has one, and find out who his lifemate is! Please be good readers and review for me on this chapter!**

**Ayame**


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: No, I do not own the Dark stories. Well, I own almost every single one of the books out; I think I'm only missing two, but the characters are not mine. As I've said before, I merely use the hot men and amazing women for my own sick amusement, and your, the readers, enjoyment. Oh, and just so you know, this chapter will be all about the "mysterious" woman who will be Zacarais's lifemate, only after this chapter she won't be so mysterious. I personally like her, so I hope you will too. This is a little shorter than the last chapter, but it's really more of an introduction, so I think I can be forgiven for that.**

**Dark Survival**

"Rawr! Rawr!"

The soft sound of the cub of a tiger is truly a wonderous thing. Althea Atalo knew this for a fact, and believed it more than anything in the world. She knelt next to the tiger she'd raised from a cub, the tiger she'd named Brigid, meaning strong, and helped the mother three times over to clean her two new cubs.

Althea's light brown hair, which fell just past her butt, was currently braided in a crown around her head, to keep it out of her eyes. Her eyes, the color of wet grass but could turn blue depending on which light she was in, were now full of warmth and love. Because she was attending a birth, she was wearing old jeans and a warm, light blue sweater.

Next to her was the huge tiger she'd been with since she was just a baby, the tiger her deceased parents had told her crawled right up to her just weeks after she was born and stayed with her since then. When he was fully grown, over 900 pounds of strong muscle and almost 7 feet in length, including his tail, Althea had found a way to bind them together, so that they would both live a lifetime together. He stayed in his prime with her; when she died, he would die as well. He had mismatched eyes, dark blue and Althea's own wet grass green, and his own pattern of black stripes over luscious orange fur. His name was Caitir; it meant pure, and unsullied.

Caitir moved his great length foreword and used his long, flat tongue to help clean off the first cub, a male. Althea leaned foreword to nuzzle his ear, whispering, "We'll call him Buzz. It may mean 'village in the hills,' but I think it fits him. Look at that fur sticking up on his head!"

She wiped some slime off the second cub's head; this was a female. "And you shall be Brynn. That means small hill; it's appropriate since you were born in this cave, which is on a small hill." She smiled, then frowned a little. She was getting the impression of extreme exhaustion from Brigid, when she shouldn't be so tired. "Here, Caitir; finish washing Brynn, will you? I think something's wrong with Brigid."

The huge tiger obediently began washing the second cub, rumbling deeply when the cub mewled unhappily.

Althea shoved the blankets aside to get a better look at the female; she was breathing heavily, and there was blood on the fur of her leg. _Oh no; did something go wrong with the birth? I would have felt it, wouldn't I have?_ She wondered, reaching inside herself to draw out the healing power she'd been born with. It gathered in her palms, which she placed over the hindside of Brigid. Something was torn in the female's body; possibly from the claws of the cubs.

_Take what I give you; have just a little bit of me to survive._ The words were whispered in her mind, flowing into Brigid. But the tiger shifted, and she recieved another impression; the tiger's homeland, her parents, the first cub she'd ever lost. She also recieved an emotion; loneliness, a wish to go on. Her cubs would survive without her; she knew Althea would care for them. Althea inhaled sharply; Brigid wanted to leave this world. She wanted to join her first mate, who'd died in a fight with another potential mate, join her parents, join her first cub. She was weary of the world here.

Caitir lumbered closer, his rough tongue moving on the skin of her cheek, a rough caress. He growled softly; she knew what he wanted. He knew it was Brigid's time to go as well, and wanted Althea to let her go. Althea sighed; she'd do it, but she'd ease the way. Instead of using her power to heal the female, she instead took away all pain, and helped lead her spirit on to the next world.

Caitir nuzzled her shoulder, then the cooling female. Breathing deeply, he picked Brynn up by the scruff of her neck; the cub instinctually curled her body inward. Althea sighed and picked up the other cub, allowing her huge friend to lead the way out of the 30 acres of forest she owned, back to her cabin.

* * *

_Zacarias, we will go to ground now. Release your panther state._ Gregori commanded, releasing his own owl state. Next to him, Savannah also turned human once more.

Zacarias growled at being ordered about, but also returned to being human. He didn't say anything; he just opened the ground to recieve him.

When he was in the ground and closed off from the other two, Savannah sighed. _It's really creepy being around him, Gregori. Are you sure I should have come with you?_

Gregori let loose a rare smile, and opened the ground a section above Zacarias; they would watch over him while he rested. _Of course you should have come with me, Savannah. I wouldn't have left you for the world. And you know that you would not have survived a seperation from me._

She smiled, and leaned up to kiss him. _I know. I just hope we get to the girl's place before it's too late. I can feel the darkness in him rising with each night._

Gregori nodded, and floated into the earth with her at his side. _I know; I feel it too. But don't worry so much. She is his lifemate; I am certain. Now, rest; we'll be flying all night tomorrow after feeding._

She nodded, cuddled up to him, and allowed the sleep of their people to fall over her. Her lungs stopped breathing, her heart stopped beating, and she was dead to the world.

* * *

Althea shivered in the warmth of her cabin, feeling a chill run down her spine. She'd just had the oddest feeling, much like the saying, "someone walking over your grave." Next to her, Caitir, who'd been sleeping, stirred, raising his giant head. Unlike her other large cats, he could speak to her, mind-to-mind.

_What is it?_ He questioned, a deep rumble in her mind. The cubs resting next to his warm stomach didn't stir when he did, though, thankfully.

She was in the process of unbraiding her now curly hair, and had paused; she resumed now. _I'm sure it's nothing, really. I just had the oddest feeling, like something dangerous was coming after me._

Caitir delicately sniffed the air, sneezing lightly. _You are afraid. You should know that I, as well as the many of my kind that you care for, are here for you. You have no reason to fear._

Althea smiled gently and reached a hand to scratch just between his ears. His eyes closed as he began to purr loudly, practically shaking her arm with its force. _I know you'll protect me. You're our hero, Caitir. Right now, all I have to worry about is these cubs contracting infections. Well, that and finding them a formula to survive on._

He let out what sounded suspiciously like a snort, lowering his head away from her gentle caress to go back to sleep. Still smiling, Althea finished with her hair and curled up next to his back, laying on her side as she allowed his deep breaths to soothe her into sleep. Whatever the next days brought, she'd be ready for them with him at her side.

**That's the second chapter! By the way, Althea Atalo means "Youthful Healer." Well, actually that's what Atalo Althea means, but you get the point. I wish I had a tiger; they're definately the cutest animals alive, besides panthers, of course. But I can't wait until Zacarias** **and Althea meet! It's not going to be in the next chapter, sadly; I'm thinking the chapter after the next. Betcha can't wait, huh?**

**Ayame**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: Once again, I don't own the Carpathian people. It would be really awesome to own them, though, don't you think? And by the way, did you know that dogs, female dogs, are the best mother animals because they'll adopt babies of other species as their own? It's pretty interesting, really. So, ignoring that, enjoy this new installment of Dark Survival. Oh, and by the way, I kinda lied in the last chapter. Zacarias and Althea will be meeting in this chapter, but not the normal way. I decided not to wait.**

**Dark Survival**

Morning found Althea standing at her counter, whisking milk and water into a powder mix of her own making. It was full of nutrients for the new cubs. She made sure to get any and all bubbles of powder to explode so that the little tigers wouldn't choke. When she was done mixing it, she poured it into long, large baby bottles with rubber nipples at the top. She cleaned up her mess, and carried the bottles back to the cave where Caitir was watching over the cubs. She found him cleaning Buzz while Brynn slept cuddled against his sometimes-moving tail.

"Ready to feed them, Caitir?" She smiled, wincing a little as the large tiger used an equally large paw to roll Brynn over to wake her. "You didn't need to do that, you know." She scolded, picking the female up carefully by her ribs and placing the rubber against her mouth. Almost immediately, the cub began to suck, which was good; sometimes they refused to take milk from an outside source. The only thing to watch for now would be if her body accepted, or rejected, the substance. With the first cub, it took over twenty minutes to feed her, and longer to feed the more rambunctious male cub Buzz. But both accepted the drink as a subsitute for their mother's milk.

_That stuff smells horrible._ Caitir commented, sniffing the wet muzzle of Buzz.

Althea grinned. "You probably drank something like this when you were a cub, you know, Caitir."

He sniffed; obviously he didn't think so. But then he paused, and sniffed the air again, growling deep in his throat.

"What's wrong?" Althea asked, a little worried. His growl, when deep like that, never meant anything good.

_I sense something dark. Coming this way. I am going to check it out; stay out of sight with the cubs._ And with that he disappeared.

"-sigh- He always has to do things his way. Oh, well; better let him think he's the boss, eh, Brynn?" She smiled and nuzzled that soft, somewhat clumpy and very small fur before picking up Buzz and leading them to the far back of the cave.

* * *

"What's wrong, Zacarias? Are you sensing something?" Gregori looked down at the man who'd finished feeding over an hour ago, under his supervision, of course. He was staring off into space, what seemed almost like confusion on his face.

Zacarais whipped his head around, staring at Gregori with a gaze so intense it would have cowed any normal person. But Gregori was not normal, and therefore it didn't affect him; he kept his gaze direct, and waited for the eldest of the De La Cruz family to speak. He did, after turning to look at where he'd been staring before.

"Something is coming after us; tracking us, I believe." His voice was emotionless, cold as he continued to watch that spot. His body ached to change, to become the huge panther form that he usually liked to run as. He gave in, feeling his muscles contort, bones growing and cracking and gaining pitch-black hair. He dropped on all fours, watching the forest in front of him with the single-minded intensity only one such as him could hold.

Gregori shifted his body so that he was standing in front of Savannah, protecting her against any threat that might come to her. He sent his mind seeking, and found what Zacarias had found; a creature of supurb intelligance was stalking them, closing with every second they stood there waiting for it. But, he couldn't sense any evil from in; in fact, it was just the opposite, more like curiosity mixed with some sort of low form of anger. It was really quite confusing.

"It's here." Savannah said softly, reflexively touching his arm as a huge creature stalked into the path they'd created, leaving the shelter of the trees. It was an impressive creature, all orange and black stripes, nearly 11 feet in length with a great girth. It stopped right before Zacarias, growling as it crouched low to the ground. "Oh, my." Savannah breathed; she'd never seen such a beautiful creature before.

Gregori tried to do a quick scan of the tiger's mind, to turn its intentions to leavig them unharmed, but found something like a strong barrier blocking his way. The tiger was obviously protected by someone, but even with the barrier he could sense its intelligence. There were few things that surprised him, but this did, and he conveyed his thoughts to his lifemate silently.

_Do you think it's the tiger the two saw with that girl? His intellect would explain that; being in close contact with a human with psychic abilities would obviously raise the brain capacity._ She thought at him, watching the tiger closely. It didn't seem to be making any agressive moves, although it hadn't once taken its eyes off of the panther that was Zacarias.

Zacarias felt the cat in him battle for dominance over his mind, but he refused to follow those instincts. Instead, he watched the tiger watch him, unmoving. It seemed an eternity passed before those yellow-golden eyes switched to Gregori and Savannah. It seemed to give a snort of derision before turning back to Zacarias, and then turning around and walking back to the forest. When it noticed that Zacarias wasn't following, it growled menacingly. Zacarias, in the panther's body, swished its tail and made to follow, noticing the other two Carpathians following him.

But the tiger stopped immediately and snarled at them until they stilled. He seemed to grin and nudged Zacarias's large form, only a little bit smaller than his form, with his muzzle, until they both slipped into the darkness of the forest. And then the tiger took the lead, taking this odd creature who was a panther and yet not to his master.

* * *

Althea felt the air pulse around her, and knew Caitir had returned. Smiling, feeling the tiny cubs clinging to her arms with their equally tiny claws, she stepped outside of the cave, and was greeted by a panther with the sleekest fur she'd ever seen. It was very healthy looking, with intelligant black eyes with gold flecks, and was as overgrown for its species as Caitir. And there was also something familiar about this creature, something that made her heart and her head hurt to think about. She frowned.

_He was with two creatures who didn't smell human. I brought him here, but I do not know if they followed. You need to be careful._ Caitir commanded, nudging the panther foreword once more with its muzzle.

Smiling, Althea bent so she was eye level with the creature's eyes, and spoke. "You are one fine creature, sir. And from what I can tell, you aren't injured, but you're welcome to stay at this enclosure anyway, as long as you don't attack any of the other large cats here. I'll have Caitir keep an eye on you. Now, what would your name be?"

When she spoke, Zacarias growled, his body inside the cat responding instantly. He could feel his emotions returning; he could see the colors of the trees and the grass around him. Need slammed into him, hard and fast, making the cat hiss in agitation. It didn't like all these colors blurring his vision together, making it hard for him to see. His great form swayed, the picture of the young woman in front of him fading in and out. But he could see it now; long, light brown hair pulled back in a pony-tail, lightly tan skin, and the most beautiful green eyes that watched him with concern.

He had finally found her, her lifemate. Gregori and the Prince had been right; she was his. His salvation, his woman. He growled in possession and happiness, and the other large cat, Caitir, drifted closer to offer protection to the woman. He knew it was rediculous, but he felt fierce anger and red hot jealousy flash through him towards the cat.

Althea noticed the cat seemed to be retreating, growing more hostile, and knew she needed to difuse the situation, and fast. Sighing, she placed Buzz on Caitir's head and Brynn in front of him. Then she stood, hearing her bones pop loudly, and motioned to the new large cat in her vicinity. "Caitir, take the cubs back to the cave; have them sleep. And since I haven't heard your name, we'll call you...Z, for now. (a/n: Z is what Ash in the Sherrilyn Kenyon books called Zarek.) You come with me, so I can make sure there isn't anything wrong with you. Come on." She patted her knee, and he followed her into the cabin she stayed in.

He followed her, his lifemate; he would follow her to the ends of the earth if he had to. He had never felt such joy before in his life, except when he was a mere fledgling with his brothers and the Manilov brothers and Ivory. But those memories he blocked out. Instead, he sent one thought to Gregori, who seemed to keep away, sensing the scores of large cats around.

_You were right, Dark One. I've found her, my lifemate._

* * *

Gregori looked over at Savannah, feeling her happiness and joy at the thought they'd just recieved. She was beaming, so happy, that he couldn't resist picking her up and twirling her around.

"Did you hear, Gregori? She's his lifemate! One of our strongest warriors is going to be saved; he won't be fighting the darkness any longer!" She said, breathless.

He nodded. "Yes, I heard, and I, too, feel joy that he will be saved. But there is still the fact that he could fall to the darkness before he ties her to him. We must be careful and watch over him, make sure he doesn't make any mistakes." It wasn't something he wanted to do, he would rather trust the Carpathian, but that couldn't be done. Not when he rode his damnation so closely.

Savannah sighed. "You are right, of course. We will watch him close. And, perhaps, I could communicate with the girl? I would like to do that, to help her in some way."

This time it was Gregori's turn to sigh. Yet he knew what would happen. Even if he were to say no, she would go ahead and defy him and meet the girl. So he chose the easy way out. "Fine. Tomorrow night you will go to her, but I will accompany you. This I decree."

And she accepted. It was as much of an allowance as he would make, and that made her happy. She'd spoken the truth; she wanted to befriend the girl, to find out how she knew the eldest De La Cruz. And when the time came, she wanted to help her through what she was told was the most painful thing she would ever experience in her life when it came to it. It was the least she could do.

**There we go; for some reason, this took me a long time to type. Maybe I shouldn't watch House and such while typing, then. And excuse the fact that this chapter is short; I have a feeling that these chapters aren't going to be hitting the 2,000 words at least a chapter quota I want. But whatever. Hm, I wonder what'll happen next...Oh, guess what, October comes out Dark Curse, which is Nicolas De La Cruz's book! Yay! And July 29 is Turbulent Tides! I can't wait! But enough of that; what did you guys think? Did you like? Please review and tell me!**

**Ayame**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: Once again, I own nothing. Except, of course, this candy corn I'm eating; that stuff is like drugs, man. It's so good. Anyway, I probably should have gotten this chapter out sooner, but you guys don't really mind all that much, right? I hope. **

**Dark Survival**

"Here we are. A nice, cozy leaf pallet for you. I didn't put you in with any of the other cats, because you're new, and they can often be quite viscious, when they want to. But you'll be fine here, and later I'll bring you some meat. Now, just hold sitll, and let me check you for wounds, alright?" Althea smiled, trying to put the panther at ease. It hadn't stopped looking at her with those intense eyes since she'd first led it inside. She began to grow just a little unnerved as it continued to stare unblinkingly, not moving from its spot. "Okay. I'll just leave you here. I have to feed the other cats." She smiled and turned away, walking out of the special room she kept for the more wild cats. She didn't notice at first that he followed her, trailing right in her footsteps.

She left the cabin and stopped first at the enclosure that held the jaguars. They were fierce, often competetive creatures, but all came up to greet Althea as she unlocked the gate and stepped inside. Z wanted to follow her, but the other cats had caught his scent, and were growling in warning at him. So he stayed back, watching.

Caitir came up behind him, dragging what looked like a long deer leg, fresh by the scent of it and dripping blood. The tiger glanced at him before dragging the leg into the jaguar enclosure, snarling at the cats when they tried to get close before he even put it on the ground.

"Thank you, Caitir. Did you already feed the leopards? Good. Next is the tigers then."

Zacarias followed silently to the largest enclosure around; it held more than thirty tigers inside. All of them came up and greeted Caitir, rubbing against his fur and nuzzling him, nipping at his muzzle for attention. He was definately the king of the jungle around here. The largest of them all, and their surperior in every way. Again Zacarias felt that tiny singe of jealousy, but this was more from the cat in whose body he resided, rather than from his Carpathian side. It wanted to be the dominant one.

"Caitir, did you save some for Z, who is...apparently out of his room." Althea spotted Zacarias, frowning a little.

_There is just enough of the deer left for the both of us._ He replied, tipping a smaller tiger over with his giant paw. It rolled back a few feet.

"Good. Come, then; you can always play with them earlier. I want to give both of you baths, to make sure you haven't picked up any ticks or fleas or anything in the forest."

**xx**

Zacarias hissed as he glared at the metal tub of water; it was filled with soap, of all things. As a Carpathian, he had no reason to bathe, because he could clean himself with a though, but of course Althea didn't know that, but still.

Caitir had already been washed, loving every minute of it too, and was currently shaking off excess water, not caring where any of the drops landed. He'd gotten Althea pretty soaked, too, from his twitching tail and moving paws. Zacarias wished he didn't have to look at her wet, glistening skin; it tested his control, which wasn't as rock-solid as he wished it were.

"Come on, Z, in the tub now." Althea coaxed, holding out a few fingers.

Zacarias shook his head, growling low in his throat. Althea sighed.

"You can either get in, or I'll pour the water over you. Your choice." This time it was an ultimatum.

Caitir stretched his back and ambled over to Zacarias's form, sniffing loudly. The panther growled lower, but of course the tiger merely ignored him.

_He hasn't gotten any fleas, and I can't smell blood from ticks. He will be fine without a bath, for he does not smell dirty._

Althea sighed again, louder. "Fine, I won't give you a bath. Today. But you will get one tomorrow, and I don't want to hear any excuses. Not that you've given any, of course. But it's getting late, so lets just go to bed. Caitir, if you'd get him his meat. I'm just going to dump out this water, then i'm going to bed."

Caitir waited until Althea was gone, before moving so that he was nose to nose with Zacarias. The panther was surprised when he heard a gruff voice in his mind, that obviously belonged to the tiger.

_I will warn you now. I can sense a form of darkness in you that, if you allow to spread over to Althea, I will kill you for. And I sense that you are different. You may keep your secrets for now, but do not expect to have them forever._ And then he dragged an arm of a deer over to Zacarias, before taking the torso into his own room in the cabin.

Zacarias wondered idly if he truly would have to explain what he was, hten decided he would have to because Althea was obviously his lifemate, and she'd have to know everything about it. That wasn't a day he was waiting for. He grimaced at the fresh meat, the scent of blood making his beast howl, but ignoring it. Instead, he left it where it was, and went into Althea's room, blurring his form so she wouldn't know he was there.

He'd had enough time seperated from her; no longer.

**Wow, this chapter was forced, so I'm cutting it short. The next chapter, Althea meets Savannah, and Gregori disguises himself as an animal. I'll most likely make it a wolf. Well, though, what do you guys think? It's short, but I said before, these chatpers will probably be shorter than my normal ones. Please review for me! And, if there are any mistakes, feel free to point them out.**

**Ayame**


	5. Important Notice!

**This is a notice on all of my stories. All of them, except for my Secrets story, are on hold until further notice. NOTE!! This does not mean that I'm not going to finish them; I like all of my stories too much to not finish them. It merely means that I won't be updating for a while. The reason for this is because I'm trying to finish two requested one-shots; one is about half-way done, and I've started the other. So I ask that all of you, my readers, please be patient until I am able to continue these stories.**

**Arigatou,**

**Ayame**


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I'm back, finally. At least, with this chapter. I realize that I'm not going to get that next one-shot written in the next few days, and neither will I get the other two chapters I'm working on written either, so I figured I'd go ahead and write the chapter I'm almost completely positive will get written soon. So enjoy the new installment of Dark Survival. Oh, that reminds me; thank you all for being _so_ patient for this too; I'm really sorry I made you wait so long to read this!**

**Dark Survival**

When Althea woke the next morning, it was to feel Z's large form leaving the warmth of her bed. She was confused for a moment before she realized that he'd obviously spent the night in her room, but before she could object to that, she felt an inexplicable feeling of fatigue. Her eyes fell closed, and the last thing she saw was Z's panther form blurring, and the form of a male taking its place. But of course, that was impossible, so she figured she'd already fallen asleep, and was dreaming.

Zacarias gave Althea one last glance before disappearing into the night. He'd stayed as long as he possibly could, risking exposure to the sun and becoming immobile and vulnerable. He couldn't stay any longer; he had to go to ground. He could only place safeguards around his lifemate and her "den" of large cats, before shifting the ground close to her compound and placing himself deep within surprisingly healthy soil. It was time for him to rest too.

**xx**

Althea wondered idly where Z had gone. She hadn't seen him all day, and was growing worried. Caitir had informed her that none of the other cats had gotten hold of the panther, but that could mean anything. And it hadn't eaten the meat she'd left for it yesterday. That really worried her.

_We have company._

Althea turned, expecting to see Z returning, but was shocked to find another female standing on her porch. The porch she'd just finished cleaning. The woman had blue-black hair that fell prettily down her back, and warm eyes that watched Althea come foreword. She was dressed simply and smartly for the warm evening air. But it wasn't her appearance that surprised Althea.

No, it was the wolf at her side. Large, muscular, and with gray fur and unusual silver eyes. Althea sensed intelligence about the creature and shifted, seeking the health of her large cats.

Savannah smiled to put the woman at ease. She was much prettier up close, and did have a strange power about her. She could feel the girl reaching out her senses, seeking the cats first and then checking out the wolf, Gregori. She knew her lifemate had his thoughts under control, and stuck out a hand. "Good evening. I am Savannah Daratrazanoff. I'd heard from the village about your collection of large cats, and came over to see them myself. I am sorry for not sending word beforehand."

Althea shook her head, grasping the other's hand without a thought. "Not at all. Are you requesting a tour of the grounds, then?" She waved the woman off the porch; now she'd have to clean it again. But that was okay.

The wolf, Gregori, sniffed delicately at her heels as she walked, and she worked hard not to flinch. Large cats she was perfectly fine with, but wolves were another story. She had never seen one up close, and hadn't expected to in her lifetime. But she pushed the worry from her mind for the moment and pointed towards the cheetah's den. "There I house the cheetahs. They're normally perfectly content and peaceful, but lately two of the females have gone into heat and the males have turned volatile. If it's possible, please try to keep your wolf away from them for the time being. Over here are the lions. They are indeed more dangerous than the other large cats but all except the leader of the pride I have raised since birth, and all are harmless for the most part. Unless you try to interrupt their feeding time; that is a very foolish thing to do." She smiled thinking of what she called "her" pride.

Savannah could feel the pleasure coming off the woman; she obviously cared a great deal about her cats. That was good; it meant she would be a great lifemate and mother. She would be loyal as well. After repeating her thoughts to Gregori she looked to the side where she sensed Zacarias finally showing himself. He was coming from the direction of the leopards with the largest cat she'd ever seen trailing behind him. Hearing a little laugh, Savannah turned to Althea with a raised eyebrow.

"Caitir. Come meet our visitors; we've been touring the dens of the cats. And I see you found Z as well; how wonderful that you two are becoming friends so quickly!" She clapped her hands in delight, ignoring the thoughts from Caitir that he most definitely did not want Z for a friend. "Mrs. Daratrazanoff, I would like you to meet Caitir. He has raised all of these animals by my side for the years they've been with me. Caitir, this is Savannah Daratrazanoff."

Caitir politely sniffed Savannah's hand first, then Gregori's snout, ignoring the tiny snarl the wolf emitted. _These two remind me of Z. There is something different about them._ The words ghosted through Althea's mind, and she frowned.

Savannah, noticing this, wished that she could read this animal, but strangely its thoughts were as closed to hers as a shielded Carpathian's might be. How odd. "Well, it appears that your Caitir doesn't much like my Gregori. Perhaps it's the difference in species." She laughed it off.

Althea nodded but didn't speak. Instead she watched as Caitir disappeared, only to reappear with one of the cubs that had been born before, carrying it delicately between his teeth. He stopped before Savannah and sat on his haunches, waiting for her to accept the cub from his jaws.

The Carpathian did with a soft look, holding the cub appropriately without Althea having to correct her. The look on her face was one of absolute adoration as she scratched the head of the kitten as gently as she could. Gregori caught her thoughts; surprisingly, she was imagining their own children, the twin girls that would hopefully be born safely into their world months from now. But why a cub would incite such thoughts he didn't know.

"The mother of those cubs died recently; Caitir has taken to them like a real father. Well, actually I don't know if he is the father or not; it's hard to tell with the large cats, and there was never a cat that stayed especially close to the mother. I guess we'll find out eventually." She smiled fondly at the kitten, patting Caitir's head affectionately.

Savannah nodded, a plan already blossoming in her mind. "I see. Actually, Miss Althea, I wasn't quite truthful with you before. You see, I'm actually a studier of animal behavior, although I did hear about you through the village. I haven't been able to study these large cats in their natural habitats, which is why I came to you. I was hoping you'd allow me to observe your large cats. I would reimburse you, of course." She added a mental push to make sure her plan succeeded.

Zacarias growled, sensing the push and despising that such a thing was used on his lifemate, but Gregori only growled back at him. It was needed, he explained, to help get them together quicker. Seeming to frown in his cat form Zacarias crouched but didn't advance; he would let this play out. As long as it didn't harm his mate, that is.

"Alright; I'm sure that'd be alright. And I can monitor the cats for you; to make sure none of them will become aggressive towards you. Would you be staying at the village or would you like me to prepare a room for you here at the cabin?" Althea smiled again, already taking a step towards the cabin.

Savannah laughed lightly. "I thought, if it isn't too much trouble, that it would be easiest if I stayed here. After all, living among the cats' dens day and night would provide the best observations, would it not?" She followed after the woman as they moved foreword. "Oh, I must tell you; I only work with cats at night. You see, I've often worked late and like to sleep during the day, and I find it easiest to observe the cats at night, as their natures become truer then. I hope you won't mind." She hated being so devious for the woman but, she reminded herself, it was what was best for Zacarias.

Althea waited for Zacarias and Gregori to join them before opening the door. "Of course I understand. I'll do my best not to hinder your work, although I hope we can become friends for the duration of your stay. There's something about you, something that reminds me of the past...." She trailed off, unsure, biting her lip.

Savannah pressed a loving hand to her shoulder, ignoring Zacarias and Gregori's warning growls. "Don't think too much on it. And I'm sure you won't be a hindrance; I think that would be impossible." She grinned in excitement. "And just think! You'll have another female around! We can talk about clothes, and boys, and go shopping for the cats and ourselves together! It'll be so much fun! I think we'll become the best of friends!"

Althea nodded, laughing as well. It sounded really fun and exciting but there was something weighing heavily on her mind. Was it the sulky form of Z, or the rumbling form of Gregori? There was something so strange about those two animals. Maybe in the time that the woman and her wolf stayed here she'd learn more and abate her curiosity. She could only hope. "Come; I'll show you the guest room now, and you can begin your observations while I tidy up. If you need help, Caitir will find you." She needed time alone to think anyway.

**There you have it! My horrible attempt at an update. I'm so bad. Anyway, it appears the inspiration mosquito has bitten me; just a hint of an idea formed itself! Unfortunately, I lost it; maybe it'll show up again the more I write. But! I'm very, very very sorry for not updating sooner! I'll try my absolute hardest to get the next update up sooner, although I'm sure it won't take 2-3 months. Please review and tell me what you think! Oh, and I'm looking for a beta. Anyone open for the job?  
**

**~Ayame~**


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